Two seemingly unremarkable developments in the Israel–Iran war help illuminate the conflict and its wider ramifications.
The first was Britain sending warplanes to the Persian Gulf for what Prime Minister Keir Starmer called “contingency support across the region.” One briefly and uncomfortably wondered which side Britain might support.
If the British air force goes into action, it will, of course, be against Iran, presumably to prevent the rogue state from spreading conflict to neighboring countries. But a frisson of doubt arose, for London, like other European governments, has been shamefully equivocal in supporting Israel’s war of survival against Iran and its proxies.
Some nations of the West have diminished themselves dreadfully in recent decades and now equivocate over a clear choice between enlightened self-interest on the one hand and plain evil and cultural defeat on the other. It is a grim token of the West’s irresolution in its own cause and in the cause of right that many of its constituent nations and people fail to recognize Israel as an ally and friend.
Part of the explanation for this lies in ancient hatred of Jews, and part lies in the modern manifestation of that evil, which is left-wing support for morally and developmentally backward peoples who, because of their race, are perversely depicted as oppressed by the West rather than by their own leaders.
Britain and France recently moved toward recognition of a Palestinian state, although this plan was suspended, probably only temporarily, under pressure from President Donald Trump. Ireland, Norway, and Spain have already taken this ignoble step.
Such a move should be unthinkable, perhaps long term but certainly at present, for it rewards Iran’s genocidal attack on Israel on Oct 7, 2023, through its terrorist proxy, Hamas, and on Oct. 8 through its even bigger terrorist proxy, Hezbollah. One cannot help suspecting that Starmer and French President Emanuel Macron are motivated partly by their desire to appease their restive Muslim minority populations.
Even while sending planes to the Gulf, Starmer said his “constant message is deescalate.” But why deescalate when the terrorist tyranny is losing and it is becoming less and less capable every day of threatening the Jewish state, the Middle East, the West, and the Great Satan? Why give the mullahs a reprieve, which would serve only to let them regroup and later resume their decadeslong mission of religious and cultural genocide?
Demands for deescalation against Iran are precisely parallel to demands over the past 20 months that Israel cease military operations in Gaza against Hamas and also not broaden the war to destroy Hezbollah. Indeed, they are really a single demand — that an alliance bent on annihilation be given another chance to achieve its ends later rather than being finished off now.
An aggressor that starts a war, as Iran did in 2023, has no right to negotiate and should not receive any support when it sees itself losing and tries to prevent defeat with disingenuous offers. Of course, Iran wants to talk now that its top military and intelligence officials are being killed, its missiles and other warfighting capabilities are being destroyed, and sensible questions are being asked about whether the clerical despotism itself is much longer for this world.
Talks now would be a victory for Iran if they amounted to more than surrender terms. Iran’s options should be narrowed to variations all within the category of capitulation. That means minimally the elimination of its nuclear and missile programs and maximally the end of ayatollah rule.
This brings us to the second development in the conflict that struck me as peculiarly significant. It was news on Monday that more Iranian missiles were heading toward southern Israel.
This was, in itself, no surprise, for Iran had been lobbing missiles at the Jewish state for several days. But the news of further exchanges came after Trump said Iran wanted to negotiate, and it was a relief to realize Tehran was not showing the sort of restraint that could pressure Israel to end its military operations prematurely.
DRONES ARE THE NEW WAR MACHINE
As long as Iran is firing missiles at Israel, especially at civilians, there is every reason for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to continue dismantling the ayatollahs’ war machine. This is something all decent people should want.
One does not want more Israeli civilians to die, nor does one want Iranian civilians to die, but Iranian attacks have proved largely ineffective and, harsh though it doubtless sounds, the deadly cost of continuing the fight is worth paying to avoid the much deadlier cost of Islamist Iran restoring its strength and enhancing it by developing nuclear weapons.